‘The Bills defense again ranked second in 2004 and Buffalo went 9-7. But the bottom fell out last year and the defense ranked 29th. "My first couple years there, we were cap strung but we competed," Gray said. "We were in the middle of the road defensively and then we were really good for a couple years. Last year, things broke apart when we lost Takeo [Spikes to injury] and Pat [Williams to free agency] and other core players. It taught me that I have to make sure in the future to stand on the table for your core players. The scheme you teach is just a starting point. You need players to make it happen." Gray said he was undecided about returning to Buffalo if Mularkey had stayed.’